For this one I was invited out to Nevada to direct, shoot, and edit a music video with the guys from Focal Bliss. They’d already done some amazing video work and wanted to see how it is that I do whatever it is that I do when making a music video first hand. A few bands and artist names were bandied about as were several locations. Three days before the shoot I was combing through MySpace and happened to stumble on this incredible band from Vegas called Endeverafter. Phone calls were made and somehow the pieces fell into place.

As it happened the band and their management picked the song “Next Best Thing” which not only was the one that I had hoped for but lent itself perfectly to one of the options we had available as a an option for a location, a little ghost town just outside the city limits.The desert, town and subsequent surroundings (replete with a crashed aeroplane) fit the mood and texture of the song flawlessly.

So basically this whole thing came together in about three days. Jim and Shawn from Focal bliss were great. Jim set the whole thing up and delivered on every level, not to mention doing an incredible job manning the jib, Shawn with the Stedicam and great eye for getting the shot.

As for the band, Michael, Tommi, Kristan, Eric it would be hard to ask for cooler guys to work with, especially considering that they had had no idea that they were even going to be shooting this just days prior. Consummate performers ready to entertain at the drop of a hat … even in the middle of the friggin desert. Definitely had a great time hanging out with em.

Huge thanks to Rob Hitt from Crush Management for miraculously being at the office well after hours when I first called and being willing to get the band on board to do this!

As for the technical this was shot with two Sony EX3’s and my trusty EX1 outfitted with a Letus35 Extreme. We had a jib, a Stedicam, a light truck (though we really only used bounce cards). Edited in Sony Vegas, CC with Magic Bullet.

3 Responses to "Endeverafter – Next Best Thing"

Had an amazing time working with Underground Planet. Endeverafter could not have asked for a more relaxed, cool, calm, collected and incredibly creative director for our video “Next Best Thing”. Very rarely does someone come along and completely understand the vision a band has and Ray came along and nailed it on the head. This video is by far Endeverafter’s best video to date. We are incredibly proud and ecstatic that this all came to fruition on such short notice and very tough circumstances. Ray Schlogel is an outstanding director and I look forward to working with him on future Endeverafter videos. Thank you a hundred times over Ray Schlogel. You really do have golden ears and eyes.

As a huge fan of EndeverafteR, I’ve been looking forward, with great anticipation, to this new video. Ray definitely captured the essence of “Next Best Thing” – the mood, the vibe and the emotion. The desert setting really crystallizes the sentiment of loneliness in the lyric. Awesome! Good job, Raymond.

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